“My dad has mentioned that he was Dundee United’s most expensive player,” laughs Aaron Pressley.
The smile; the demeanour; the languid speech pattern — he is the spitting image of his old man, Steven.
And he will seek to follow in the footsteps of the former United defender on Friday night when Scotland U21s face Kazakhstan at Tannadice.
Given Aaron, 20, was born three years after Pressley Sr departed the City of Discovery for Hearts, this will represent the youngster’s first ever experience of his father’s old stomping ground.
“It will be good to play at Tannadice for the first time and my dad is coming to watch, so that will be a nice moment,” adds Pressley.
Ideal mentor
For Steven Pressley — a £750,000 signing for United back in 1995 — to be the nervous observer will be a welcome change for Aaron.
He was accustomed to being the one in the crowd during Pressley’s latter years as a player and, in particular, during his campaigns as a manager with the likes of Falkirk, Fleetwood and Coventry.
However, it was an invaluable apprenticeship for the aspiring attacker.
“You can only learn and gain more knowledge about football as whole,” added Pressley Jr. “My dad has been a young player trying to break through. He’s experienced it all.
“Sometimes, I don’t see what he sees. As a defender, he sees it from that perspective and gives me tips on being harder to play against; things I can tweak in my game to take it to the next level.”
Asked whether he ever indulged in any back garden battles, Pressley smiled: “No, not at all…I’d bully him!”
Inspired
Even if he was too young to realise the magnitude of the moment, the elder Pressley’s exploits in winning the 2006 Scottish Cup with Hearts loom large as an inspiration.
“I’ve watched back the videos,” continued Pressley.
“It was amazing to see the whole of Edinburgh out celebrating and, as a player, I want to win things.
“Everything I’ve taken is all about having good experiences and being inspired.”
Arsenal battle
With an ideal role model in his father, precocious physicality and a fine grounding at English Premier League side Brentford, Pressley has every reason to be ambitious.
He is performing admirably on loan at AFC Wimbledon, scoring four goals in 20 appearances.
Among those outings was a heavy, but formative, 3-0 defeat against Arsenal in the EFL Cup.
And Pressley believes his top-flight dream can come true.
“I took a lot from playing against Arsenal,” recalls Pressley. “You see some of those players getting stick on social media, then you watch them and see how good they actually are.
“It was a really good experience for the full squad.”
He added: “The aim is to be a Premier League player when I go back to Brentford. It’s got to be the aim.”
